‘JIHADI BEATLE’: IT’S ALL FOREIGN TO ME
Confusion as alleged British IS terrorists appear in court
TWO alleged members of the brutal Islamic State gang dubbed The Beatles have appeared in court, with one of the British men seemingly confused by the proceedings.
Shaven-headed Alexanda Kotey, 36, told the US court: “It’s all foreign to me.”
Alleged terrorists Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, 32, have been charged over the killings of four American hostages.
The accused pair were handcuffed and in shackles as they appeared via video link at the federal court hours after being extradited to the US from Iraq.
When asked if he wanted a lawyer, Elsheikh said in a London accent: “I’ve not had any time to consult with anyone.
“With all due respect I just came here off a military base in Iraq so I have no money. I want to know whose detention
VIDEO LINK Court sketch of Elsheikh, judge & lawyer
CHIEF FBI director Wray talked about the victims
I am under. I want my rights.” Kotey, also of London, said he had not been able to contact his lawyers in the UK. The duo were remanded in custody. No pleas were entered.
They have been charged with eight terror offences including four counts of hostage-taking resulting in death for Americans, and conspiracy to murder US citizens outside the US.
They were not charged directly over the deaths of British hostages David Haines and Alan Henning in 2014, but with involvement in the murder of US aid workers Kayla Mueller and Peter Kassig and US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff. Court documents allege Kotey and Elsheikh left the UK in 2012 en route to Syria “to wage violent Jihad”. The indictment lists conversations Elsheikh allegedly had with a family member about how “the brothers” were fighting the Syrian Army and “brought back heads to the city”.
He sent photos and said “there’s many heads, this is just a couple I took a photo of ” adding a roundabout was “full of heads and bodies”, it is alleged.
The gang is said to have operated in Iraq and Syria.
It is claimed they and other IS members abused and murdered hostages. Claims include waterboarding.
FBI director Christopher Wray said:
“We mourn not only the American victims but also the British victims David Haines and Alan Henning and victims of all nations who suffered unimaginable cruelty at the hands of ISIS.”
There was a two-year legal battle over Kotey and Elsheikh. Britain only sanctioned the extradition when the US gave assurances the men would not be sentenced to death if found guilty.
They are due back at the court in Alexandria, Virginia, today.
Hostages nicknamed their captors The Beatles because of their British accents. The leader Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John, was killed by a US drone strike in 2015.
The fourth member, Aine Lesley Davis, of London, is in prison in Turkey.
There are many heads – this is just a couple I took a photo of
ALLEGED REMARK FROM ELSHEIKH ABOUT VICTIMS